ABIE (Germany) celebrated the Bicentenary of the birth of German-Australian explorer Ludwig Leichhardt in collaboration with the Australian Embassy, Berlin, the State of Queensland and the University of Queensland, at the Australian Embassy, Berlin.
Presentations were made by the great-great-great grandnephew of Ludwig Leichhardt (bearing the same name as the explorer), by His Excellency Peter Tesch, Ambassador to Germany (and also Patron of ABIE (Germany), by Reinhard Flessner of the University of Queensland and by Marc Voigt of Prima BioMed Ltd. While the presentations all had the subject of “Ludwig Leichhardt – the Man and his Legacy” in common, the individual speakers put different emphasis on Ludwig Leichhardt’s explorations in the 19th century, the reception of his scientific findings until today as well as the question how his entrepreneurial spirit can be translated into today’s business world. Further, ‘The Leichhardt Symposium on Biodiversity and Conservation’, an academic conference to be hosted by the University of Queensland later this year, was introduced to the audience. Ken Smith, Agent General, Queensland Government, let the audience know about the popularity of Ludwig Leichhardt until today. To round up the event, André Parade and Werner Pfeil, experts on the life of Ludwig Leichhardt, answered questions and shared their profound knowledge with the audience.
After the presentations and the Q&A session, about 50 attendees enjoyed a reception in the atrium of the Australian Embassy and took the opportunity to network.
ABIE (Germany) thanks all persons involved for letting this event take place, organizers as well as attendees.